Planning Programs and Projects

This study is being used by City staff and elected officials to guide transit access improvements and land use development along the corridor. A significant amount of development has been occurring near the station. Visit our Story Map for details

The study was completed in May 1999. The RTA recently completed a Phase II Transit Corridor Study which developed conceptual development programs for two parcels in the TOD area; one parcel is an under-utilized parking area Southeast of the Vermont Street Rock Island station and the other is adjacent to the station. Additionally, through an RTA Pilot Project providing implementation technical assistance, a new zoning district called the Uptown Transit-Oriented District was created and formally adopted into the City Zoning Ordinance on June 14, 2012. The new regulations can be found here. 

In 2012 Metra received a grant from the Innovation, Coordination and Enhancement (ICE) Program for improvements to the Blue Island, Vermont Street Interagency Transfer Station. This project includes additional interagency signage at multiple locations, including both Metra stations. Additionally, the RTA chose Blue Island as part of the 2013 Community Planning Program to work with ULI to assemble a developer discussion panel to provide input, guidance and advice to the City as they work to attract TOD investment on a City-owned parcel adjacent to the 119th Street Metra station. This discussion took place on August 12, 2013 and a summary of this discussion can be found in the Related Reports link. The City is currently working to implement the recommendations from this discussion.

A new station was rebuilt between 2002-2005 at the Oak Park Avenue stop on the Rock Island Line that includes a café and a clock tower with 360° views of the station area. Additionally, a new station at the 80th Avenue stop opened in the Spring of 2012.

The Village was selected for inclusion in the 2014 Community Planning Program of Projects for a Developer / Financial Advisory Panel. The Panel convened on October 14th, 2014 and a summary report of the discussion can be found below under "Related Studies".

Among the short-term goals is to expand Zabrocki Plaza, immediately east of the Oak Park Avenue Metra station, to increase space for activities that draw people into the downtown, and at the same time to showcase the downtown's amenities to people from outside Tinley Park. Because any expansion would impact parking spaces in the Metra lot, the village would have to make up for those lost spaces elsewhere near the station, and discussions with Metra about that have been ongoing.

'The Boulevard' - a mixed use project consisting of 165 units and 29,853 sq. ft of commercial space at South St and 67th Ave, was approved for construction in September 2018 and completed in 2021.

The Village of Tinley Park recently announced it is partnering with a developer that has acquired the final parcel of property needed to move forward with construction of Harmony Square, a new multi-use plaza that will be located at the corner of Oak Park Avenue and North Street in Downtown Tinley.

The Village also secured funding for a new traffic light at 80th Avenue and Timber Drive to help control traffic in the Metra station area.

The study was completed in January 2007. The Village surveyed area employers within the station area in summer of 2010 to identify any needed revisions to Pace Bus Route #626, which serves the station. Upgrades were made to the route shortly after.

Buffalo Grove was also chosen as part of the 2011 RTA Community Planning Program of Projects to update their zoning regulations in both station areas to include transit-supportive regulations. This project began in the 4th Quarter of 2011 and updated regulations & design guidelines for both station areas were completed in August 2012. 13 new townhomes were built in the Waterbury Place development within the Prairie View TOD area in 2013, but these units were approved for development prior to the start of the TOD zoning project. In spring of 2016 the Easton Station project broke ground in the Prairie View station area just west of I-94 and just south of Route 22. The development will consist of 15 luxury townhomes.

In 2019 the Village completed an update to the Prairie View plan and is now working to implement the revised vision. The updated plan calls for single-family homes and townhouses clustered around more than 12 acres of park space; a central area with a mix of uses, including single-family homes, multifamily housing and commercial properties, along with a gateway paying tribute to the neighborhood's history; and a south area featuring townhouses and a mixed-use building overlooking a plaza. The RTA continues to track development progress in both station areas and offer implementation assistance when appropriate.

In 2021, construction began on the Lilac Station development at 101 South Main Street, a 118-unit mixed-use building with a 11,000 square foot grocery store at ground level. The Village maintains a webpage dedicated to the project that includes detailed construction and permitting updates.

In 2010, the Village received an ITEP grant for $446,600 to help defray the cost of a realignment of Lincoln Avenue to mitigate traffic and safety issues at the at-grade crossing, a recommendation from the study. The Village is still searching for funding to complete this project. The Woodlands (320 condominiums and 78 townhomes) was built between 2002 and 2006.

In summer of 2017 the Village Board approved "Lexington Homes", a residential development on a vacant property in the TOD district, two blocks north of the Metra station. Located at Capulina and Ferris Avenues, the project consists of 36 townhomes, built on formerly vacant land that is partially owned by the Village.

In January 2020 the Village released an RFP seeking proposals for the redevelopment of two municipally-owned sites at 8500 & 8550 Lehigh Avenue, which included a total of approximately 1.5 acres of land area. These sites are located just south of the intersection of Lehigh and Lincoln Avenues and are directly across the street from the Morton Grove Metra Commuter Rail Station. These sites are within the Lehigh Ferris Tax Increment Financing (TIF) District.